Charlie Bone and the Healer
by spn-rules
Summary: There's a new kid at the Bone Academy with a very strange endowment- and a passion for matchmaking. My first story. R&R cos you know you want to. Improvements and ideas welcome but no Flames pretty please. Except the cat kind. Post-CB&theRK.
1. Back to School

It was the start of a new year at the Bone Academy, and as Charlie got off the bus and stared up at the grey stone building, he fancied it looked a little less forbidding than before. Back when it was Bloor's, there was total silence in the hall, but now it was filled with laughing, chattering students.

'Charlie! Charlie, wait up!' Charlie looked round to see Olivia come bouncing up to him. Her hair was fluorescent pink this week and Charlie blinked rapidly before deciding not to mention it.

'Hey, Liv.'

Fidelio, appearing beside them, wasn't so discreet. 'Whoa! Had an accident with a highlighter recently?'

Olivia punched him in the arm. 'No, idiot. I was in a movie over the holidays. Not a big part, but the director said I was so good that in his next movie he would write me as the main. Mum said I could have any dye I wanted… I'm going green next week.'

Charlie gaped at her. '_That_ shade of green?' She nodded. 'I don't want to miss that.'

Fidelio grinned. 'Dunno about you, Charlie, but I'm bringing shades.'

'Give over, Fido,' Olivia said, sounding annoyed. 'I notice you haven't done much with _your_ hair these holidays.' But as soon as the annoyance had come, it disappeared. 'Have you heard, Charlie? Emma told me a there's a new kid in our year.'

'How does Emma know that?' Charlie asked.

'_Well_, all the new kids have to go and see your dad, since he owns the school, and he told Mr Yewbeam, and Emma overheard him telling Miss In- Mrs Yewbeam.' Olivia giggled. 'I still can't get used to the fact that she's married now!'

_Neither can I,_ thought Charlie. The truth was, Paton Yewbeam was the happiest anyone had ever seen him since he married Julia Yewbeam, formerly Ingledew. Emma was constantly telling him that wherever she went she found them hugging, kissing or otherwise engaged. _The hugging isn't so bad, _she had complained, _and there's nothing wrong with kissing, but when you come down at three in the morning for a glass of water and you find them snogging on the sofa, it can be a bit disturbing, you know?_

'...Charlie? Are you even listening to me?'

'What?'

Olivia rolled her eyes. 'I _said_ that it's time for tea, so if you're wondering who the new kid is, you'll find out in a minute.'

'Oh. Right. Yeah. Yeah, OK. See you after lunch, Olivia.'

Fidelio followed him into the blue cloakroom. 'Man, could that girl get any more obvious!'

Charlie glanced over at him. 'What do you mean? I mean, yeah, the hair is a bit OTT but even so…'

'I wasn't talking about _that_, you idiot! She likes you!'

'Yeah, of course she does.'

Fidelio stared.

'We're friends, after all,' Charlie continued, unaware of his friend's real meaning.

'I'm not talking about that either. She _like _likes you!'

Now it was Charlie's turn to stare. 'What, you mean…'

Then the crowd swept in and the moment of truth was lost.


	2. Meeting the New Girl

**Right, it's me PolgaraSorceress. I forgot to do a disclaimer, so here it is- I own nothing here except Harper. By the way, this is set the September after Red Knight. I'll try and get the next chapter up as soon as possible.**

**Thanks to moowashere14- she faved chapter one after it hadn't even been up for a day! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!**

**Right. Yeah. So. On with chapter 2!**

* * *

><p>Once everyone was in the dining hall, they found themselves moving into their usual groups from before the holidays. Charlie, Fidelio, Billy Raven and Dagbert Endless sat together on the Music table, as did Emma, Tancred and Lysander on the Art table. Dr Saltweather stood up and called for silence.<p>

'It is a pleasure to welcome you all back to the Bone Academy,' he was saying when Charlie finally started listening. 'In addition to our younger students, there is a new endowed among us. Harper Sorrows, please stand.'

A girl stood up and three thousand pairs of eyes turned to her. She had straight black hair that fell to her waist and ivory skin. Her eyes were amber- not yellow like Asa's, but a deep rich gold. She was tall and slim and wore a blue cape pinned with a gold brooch in the shape of a harp.

'Dagbert Endless, Charlie Bone, you are both in music and in the same year, so I expect you to look after Harper. Show her where to go and make sure she doesn't get into trouble. Ms Sorrows, you may sit down.'

The girl nodded to the top table and sat gracefully. Charlie nudged Dagbert. 'Well, Dag? What d'you think of the new girl?'

'I wonder what her endowment is,' Dagbert murmured, not taking his eyes off her. 'Fire, maybe, with those eyes. That would be a shame.'

'Why?' asked Charlie, more than slightly startled by the change in his friend.

Dagbert quickly snapped out of it. 'Because I'm water of course. We'd clash like hell, and I don't need any more of that. Not after last year. Not after my father…' He didn't finish but Charlie understood. When the children were finally dismissed the boys hurried over to where the new girl was sat.

'You're Harper, right?'

'Yeah. Harper Sorrows. Weird name, I guess, but…' she fingered her brooch. 'I kinda like it.'

'All the endowed have unusual names,' Dagbert said with a shrug. 'Take me, for example. Dagbert Endless, anyone?'

Harper laughed. 'I see what you mean. So… if you're Dagbert, that must mean you're Charlie Bone.'

'Guilty as charged,' Charlie said with a grin.

'So,' she asked. 'What do we do now? Do we go to lessons or what?'

'Normally we would have two hours of homework in the King's room with the rest of the endowed.' Dagbert told her.

'But seen as we haven't had any lessons we'll just go up there and talk.' Charlie completed.

'Right,' Harper laughed. 'Let's go introduce me, shall we?'


End file.
